Just follow the chronological order. What are the things that we look out for while watching a movie in a theatre? Who is sitting next to you (This one comes definitely from the boys)? Jokes apart. The star cast, the director, eventually how good or bad the script, the dialogues, the editing (the real filmi bugs do it as well), the songs, the climax. Did we miss out on anything? "Clothes," the two designers, Neeta Lulla and Mandira Wirk sitting in front of Seagram's Blenders Pride Fashion Tour standee almost screech in choir.

Standing outside Neetu Chandra's room, we wondered if the lady would co-operate enough to answer the questions considering her share of controversies. And instructions were already in from manager of Jacquiline Fernandez, "No personal questions please". But we were in for a surprise. Warm welcome and candid replies. Surprisingly, no political correctness followed.

Eleven films, seven released, out of which two won national awards, Neetu is happy with the way her career is shaping up. 'I wish to do all kind of cinema. From the very pot boilers like Garam Masala to comparatively offbeat, Traffic Signal, anything with a sensible storyline is more than welcome," says the actor, in the city to walk the ramp for designer Neeta Lulla.

The actor already knows a lot about Punjabi culture as well, "The film, Oye Lucky Lucky Oye did all the help. In fact, after that people started thinking I am a Punjabi. I love to wear churidaars and Patiala salwars." There is more information. Much against her glamourous image, she doesn't party. She doesn't drink or smoke, "I find myself a boring person, who lives a very healthy lifestyle." By that she means calling it a day at 9.30pm and waking up by 6.30am. She is not even interested in Facebook or Twitter though she has an account on both, "My managers do the updates for me and that's about it."

The sole thing that we guessed correctly was her chic dressing sense. "I am very conscious about my looks. I can't sleep without my proper satin night wears or blow dried hair. Every occasion has to have a special dress for it." And last question has to be about her image of being a siren, which again comes with a straightforward reply, "I wear a certain costume only because my character demands it. If you can accept me in the character of a lady who sells clothes on footpath in Traffic Signal, then accept me in a character that requires some skin show." Didn't we say everything was answered without mincing words. 

Actress Priyanka Chopra says she is venturing into TV as a reality show host at the peak of her Bollywood career as she loves breaking rules. But she is quick to shrug off comparisons with Akshay Kumar saying he is the "original khiladi".

She will be host of Fear Factor-Khatron Ke Khiladi season three, which she says will be scarier than its previous editions that saw Akshay play host to 13 women celebrities. "I want to thank Akshay. He was so wonderful in the last two seasons of Khatron Ka Khiladi that he has already brought the show to one level, I only have to carry it forward. Comparisons would be unfair," Priyanka said in an interview. "Akshay is not only the industry's but also India's action hero. He is an original khiladi and I can't be like him; neither will I try following in his footsteps. I will try to make a mark of my own."

Breaking rules excites Priyanka and that's why she chose to venture into television now. "Television is the biggest medium to reach your audience. There is a set rule that when actors are leaving films, they come to television. It's always exciting to break rules. I'm lucky that I'm in such a stage of my career where I'm doing good films with talented people. At this point, doing something different is quite exciting," said Priyanka.

Asked why she chose "Fear Factor..." as a television debut, she said: "Actually I'm doing so many films right now that there's no time for television. When 'Fear Factor' came to me, because it's my favourite show and I love spontaneous things...and the fact that I could grill the boys and be really mean to them, I guess being a part of a show like this was really exciting for me. What made it easier for me was they required only 20 days from me."

"Fear Factor" on the Colors channel will bring together 13 celebrities competing with one another by performing daring stunts and the one who survives through all the tasks is the winner. "This time the stunts are bigger, a little more scary, a little more gross. Actually they play with your mind a lot...There can be trivial things that scare you. Some fear darkness, some may fear cockroaches, so it's basically playing with your fears," said Priyanka.

The show was earlier supposed to have cricketers as contestants this season but now they have male celebrities including model-actors Rahul Dev, Milind Soman and Dino Morea, actors Rahul Bose, Shabbir Ahluwalia, Karan Singh, funny man Cyrus Broacha, filmmaker Abhishek Kapoor and squash champion Ritwik Bhattacharya.

"I think BCCI (Board of Control for Cricket in India) had a commitment with the channel but later what happened I really don't know. But now I have contestants from various fields...so I feel it's much better because you have various people who will talk about many, many things. It's a different mix of people," said Priyanka.

Asked whom she would choose if she had to select participants among her co-stars, she said: "I would love to see Shah Rukh Khan in this show. If Ranbir (Kapoor) had been a participant it would have been great entertainment."

So will we get to see her perform dangerous stunts as well? "You will see me showing stunts. Quite a few actually...may be not in every episode,” she quipped. — IANS

She lost 30 kgs to fit into her role in Dabangg opposite Salman Khan and debutante Sonakshi Sinha says that the superstar made sure she maintained her figure by sweating it out everyday.

"It was tough losing those 30 kgs. I worked out and also followed a strict diet. Salman helped a lot, he made sure that I went to the gym after every day's shoot and not get lethargic about it," said Sonakshi. Dabangg is due in September and Sonakshi, daughter of Shatrughan and Poonam Sinha, has all her focus on the release, as she has not signed any other project yet. The 23-year-old actress says she is very choosy about films.

"I am taking it slow and not signing every film coming my way. I am very choosy about films and I want to do some good work. I am not signing anything till Dabangg releases, it's a conscious decision. I am meeting a lot of people, but I will decide only after the film releases," Sonakshi said.

This is her first turn as an actress in Bollywood and Sonakshi already has her dos and don'ts in place. The dusky beauty says she is not open to the idea of doing an item number. "I am not open to doing item numbers. I am a very shy person, I cannot be so bold," said Sonakshi.

But the actress was all praise for Malaika Arora Khan for her moves in Dabangg's raunchy item number, Munni Badnam. "I don't think I could have done Munni Badnam.

Malaika is fabulous at what she does. I am happy with what I am doing," said the actress.

The Abhinav Kashyap directed film has Sonakshi playing a rustic small town girl from UP dressed in lehenga cholis and sarees. Didn't she think of making a more glamorous debut? "I would have gone for a glamorous debut, but then again you cannot really predict what will work and what will not. I think I made a good decision taking up this film," said the actress. — PTI

Hollywood actor Russell Crowe will step into the shoes of late Heath Ledger in upcoming Australian film Dirt Music. Ledger, who passed away in 2008, had originally signed up to star in the film adaptation of Tim Winton's novel alongside Rachel Weisz, but he later quit the production in order to tackle the role of the Joker in Batman movie The Dark Knight.

Now, director Phillip Noyce has confirmed the film will be moving forward with Crowe in the lead, reports a website. "We were all set to go with Heath and Rachel Weisz. We had the money at that point. And then Heath decided to play the Joker, which you couldn't argue with. And then it just took a while to find someone else to play (the lead role of) Luther," he added. The movie will mark Crowe's first appearance in an Australian film in more than a decade.

— IANS 

Audrey Hepburn is considered a screen and style icon but Oscar winner Emma Thompson says the The Breakfast at Tiffany's star could not act. Thompson, who is writing a new movie version of Hepburn starrer 1964 classic My Fair Lady, describes the Hollywood icon as 'mumsy' and 'twee' in an interview to publications. "She can't sing and she can't really act, I'm afraid.

I'm sure she was a delightful woman - and perhaps if I had known her I would have enjoyed her acting more, but I don't and I didn't, so that's all there is to it really," the 'Sense And Sensibility' star said. The 51-year-old actress is also not a great fan of the Hepburn and Rex Harrison starrer movie, which was adapted from George Bernard Shaw's play Pygmalion. "I'm not hugely fond of the film. I find Audrey Hepburn fantastically twee. Twee is whimsy without wit. It is mimsy-mumsy sweetness without any kind of bite. And that's not for me.

Hepburn won an Oscar for her role in the 1953 Roman Holiday and her films Breakfast At Tiffany's and her role of Eliza Doolittle My Fair Lady is considered an all time classic. But her voice was dubbed over and musical's most classic songs such as I Could Have Danced All Night and The Rain in Spain are by American singer Marni Nixon.

Thompson is thrilled to be writing the new version of the musical but her screenplay will be more of Pygmalion.

"I find it chocolate-boxy, clunky and deeply theatrical. I don't think that it's a film. It's the theatre piece put onto film. It was Cecil Beaton's designs and Rex Harrison that gave it its extraordinary quality.

Thompson also doesn't like the way Eliza Doolittle was portrayed in the film, a part she hopes British actress Carey Mulligan will play. "I don't do Audrey Hepburn. I think that she's a guy thing. I'm sure she was this charming lady, but I didn't think she was a very good actress. It's high time that the extraordinary role of Eliza was reinterpreted because it's a very fantastic part for a woman," said Thompson.

My Fair Lady is about a flower seller who is taken in by posh phonetics professor, Henry Higgins. Higgins bets he can train her to speak in an upper-class accent in a bid to pass her off as a lady in society circles. — PTI 

Hollywood actress Angelina Jolie admits she misses anonymity of her early life in New York when she used to roam freely on its streets in her early 20s. The Salt actress, who raises six children with partner Brad Pitt admits she occasionally pines for the anonymity she had when first starting her career, reports a website.

"I do miss anonymity. I lived in New York in my early 20s and I used to just walk block after block. I loved it," Angelina said. Now, the actress and her family divide their time between Los Angeles, New Orleans, Cambodia and France. — IANS

When it comes to music, British-Punjabi band RDB, who composed chart topping Bollywood numbers like Kambakkht Ishq and Singh is Kinng, say that India and Pakistan are the same.

The quartet of Kuly, Manj, Surj and Nindi Kaur of RDB which stands for 'Rhythm, Dhol, Bass', blend western genres with traditional Punjabi beats and vocals and had recently performed in both India and Pakistan to packed crowds. "India is like home! And we love coming back as much as I can. I like to think that music is an international language that brings all different countries together. Coming to India and Pakistan is just like home, because they are apne bande (our people)," Surj said.

The trip to Pakistan was an emotional one, especially for Surj who was to be aboard the flight that crashed in Islamabad, killing all 152 passengers and crew. He had missed the flight by a few hours. The band launched their debut album in 2001. — PTI

92.7 BIG FM, is back with its latest offering India's first ever green humour mimicry show called Asli No. 1. The show is poised to be one of the biggest and first ever mimic shows, creating awareness in the 'green space'. Spread across 42 cities of the country, Asli No. 1 is BIG FM's hunt for India's next big mimicker, providing entertainment, while drawing listeners' attention to real issues caused by the lack of consciousness towards the environment. At Chandigarh, the Semi Final happened at Hotel Peninsula-8, Panchkula where is top five contestants were selected to participate in the final for Chandigarh. TV and Film personality Savita Bhatti was present to judge the contest. Renowned environmentalist Suder Lal Bhauguna was also present to have a look at the participants.

The selected one finalist from the city will participate in the national final which will happen at New Delhi next month wherein finalists from various cities will come on one stage. Top three winners will get to work with BIG FM and a chance to work in an album from Saregama. Apart from audiences', well renowned stand-up comedians, celebrated environmentalists and socially conscious Bollywood stars will also judge the mimic artists and choose the ones that best spread the 'green message through their humour'. Soumen Ghosh Choudhury, Business Head, 92.7 BIG FM said, "Through Asli No. 1, we are furthering our endeavour to reach consumers, through the power of relevant ideas. We are using humour as a peg to address the issues of the environment that have reached alarming heights.” — TNS

Hailed as one of the most prolific author of satirical literature, the Moga-based writer KL Garg pioneered this genre, especially in Punjabi novel writing with aplomb. "He has blended the humour and satire to give new dimension to Punjabi literature, which had the brilliance of rustic humour only," observed SS Rattu, station director, Doordarshan. Rattu was the chief guest at a seminar on KL Garg's book Tamaasha organised by the Writers Club.

Credited with over sixty publications, KL Garg is back to Moga from New Jersey (USA) after ten years. Sharanjit Kaur read out a comprehensive paper on the book at the event that had the city literati including poet Sham Singh and Dev Bhardwaj. "Any writer has to be innovative to debate the issues of social, economical and political concern and reflect these through his writings to share the anguish, grief and joys of a common man," says KL Garg, a post-graduate in English and Hindi, now retired as principal. But he has been most active as an author, with his landmark novels Dar Asal, Humas, Basnde Kubande, Tran wala Pul and Comrade Vulture (translated into Hindi and English). He has translated Nobel Peace Prize winner Elie Wiesel's books - Night, Dawn, Accident, The Forgotten and many more. It is encouraging to see a flood of literary publications in Punjabi, say over 1000 books including 150 novels in Punjabi, being published annually but we need to ensure quality of meaningful literature for the society we live in," Garg signed off.

Worried about your kids not eating enough veggies through the day? Well, then show him Popeye cartoon, organise tasting parties and involve them while you cook food for the family. A new study has found that Popeye cartoons, tasting parties and junior cooking classes could encourage kindergarten kids to increase their vegetable intake.

Researchers at Mahidol University in Bangkok found the type and amount of vegetables children ate improved after they took part in a program using multimedia and role models to promote healthy food. Twenty-six kindergarten children aged four to five participated in the eight week study.

The researchers recorded the kinds and amounts of fruit and vegetables eaten by the children before and after the program. "We got the children planting vegetable seeds, taking part in fruit and vegetable tasting parties, cooking vegetable soup, and watching Popeye cartoons. We also sent letters to parents with tips on encouraging their kids to eat fruit and vegetables, and teachers sat with children at lunch to role model healthy eating," said lead researcher Professor Chutima Sirikulchayanonta.

The researchers found vegetable intake doubled and the types of vegetables the children consumed increased from two to four. Parents also reported their children talked about vegetables more often and were proud they had eaten them in their school lunch.

She said there was no significant change in the kinds of fruit eaten by the children, but this was probably because they were already eating more fruit than vegetables at the start of the study. Sirikulchayanonta said that focusing on healthy food choices at an early age can have a major impact on the future health of adults.

The research also highlights that sitting next to children and eating the same foods as them makes children feel special.

'Tasting' parties are an enjoyable way for children to compare tastes of fruit and vegetables. Involving children in food preparation activities, like measuring, pouring and stirring helps them learn the names and colours of foods, and develops their hand-eye coordination. — ANI

While nicotine patches enable smokers to kick the butt, the latest fad is weight loss patches, already popular with celebrities including Paris Hilton. The patches look like a in square sticking plaster and can be attached to any part of the body.

The sticky pads are claimed to suppress hunger pangs and help the body burn off fat.

Makers SlimWeight claim their new patches are a better option to lose weight because the ingredients are absorbed through the skin and straight into the blood. "Every week there's a new fad diet out. Thousands of Britons struggle to lose weight and these complex diets add unnecessary hassle to the process," the Daily Express quoted a spokesman as saying.

"By simply applying one weight loss patch a day you can go about your routine safe in the knowledge that you're burning fat and reducing your cravings. "The patches work by increasing the body's ability to burn the fat it receives through food, while at the same time reducing cravings to binge eat. You consume less fat and the fat you do consume is metabolised quicker," he added.

— ANI

The advances in science and technology have definitely made life a lot easier but at the same time added lot many complications to it. In fact every thing now comes with good and bad packaged together. Try it out and you'll find that most modern day inventions are have two sides to them- the good and the bad. While you count, I'll talk about the good old spectacles today.

Over the years, spectacles have given way to contact lenses in a major way and thanks to the advances made in the field, we now have disposable and soft lenses that are easy on the eye and can be used for much longer duration than the conventional ones. While this is the good part of the modern day creations, eye related diseases are on the rise among contact lens users and what is worse is that they are blissfully unaware of the harm being caused to their cornea by improper use.

This might come as a shock to all those youngsters who wear contact lenses to look good but forget that there are do's and don'ts for using them. Eye practitioners around the globe have found that at least two thirds of cases of corneal ulcer are due to improper use of contact lenses. Dr SPS Grewal, Eye surgeon said, people who wear soft contact lenses for 24 hours or less at a stretch and also sleep wearing them, are more than three times likely to develop corneal infection than those who take them out at night. "Unfortunately, not many users are particular about the handling of their lenses and the need to maintain hygiene," says Dr Grewal.

Improper cleaning can result in bacterial infections that can pose a serious threat to vision. "It is important to follow the doctor's advice about when to discard contact lenses, otherwise you could end up with a potentially serious eye infection", says Dr Arun Jain, Additional Professor at PGI's Advance Eye Centre. Most of the eye diseases are due to lack of proper maintenance of lens. He said "ill-fitted" contact lens can cause harm to cornea. Prolonged usages can result in the edges of the lens rubbing against the cornea causing damage to it and the only way to avoid it is to use them in prescribed time limits", Dr Jain said adding that those who don't adhere to these rules are most vulnerable to bacterial or fungal infection, he added.

"Adopting poor disinfection technique is the main cause behind these diseases. Using tap water as a substitute to solution should be shunned. Some people have the habit of rinsing lens with their own saliva. This is highly infectious," said Dr. Jain. "Water accumulated in lens case may lead to bacterial growth inside the lens container," he added.